girasoles

So after a very long flight through Frankfurt and a missed flight, I finally landed in Budapest. A professor with whom I developed a friendship generously agreed to pick me up from the airport and stay with her until I had to catch my train to Sarajevo the next day. I can't tell you how much of a relief it was to see her face when I got off the train. As tired as I was from the flight, I can't imagine trying to find my way through Budapest. She gave me a mini tour of her neighborhood as we walked down along the river to the train station to get my ticket for the next day. I got to see the a lot of interesting buildings, including a beautiful stained glass synagogue, the parliament building, and others that I can remember in my mind what they look like but for sake of my jet lag I cannot remember what they were! : X I am really looking forward to coming back through Budapest at the end of my trip. This is the language nerd in me speaking, but I think Hungarian sounds and looks so interesting! I am entirely grateful for Jessie and Gyuri for their generosity and hospitality. They may dismiss it as so, but I am aware of how fortunate I am to have that connection. 

Now I am in Sarajevo, at last. As mentioned before, I had to take a train from Budapest to here (it took around 11 hours). It was surprisingly comfortable. I remember a 10 hour train ride to Granada, Spain and it was like trying to sleep in a shoebox. However, the train ride was actually very beautiful. It was really great seeing the open country with miles of green hills, fields of sunflowers, and a small town every once in a while. The sunset was probably the most rewarding, as it fell right as we were approaching Sarajevo. At the station, I was picked up by one of the people who work with IFS-Emmaus named Faruk. On the taxi ride back to the house, I noticed how magical the city looked at night, with the lights from houses in the hills that looked like galaxies of stars surrounding the city. Faruk was super friendly and we instantly hit it off talking over a late night dinner about directors we liked such as Coen Brothers, Tarantino, Hitchcock, etc. We're both big into movies and music, and not as much into the nightlife scene, so I think we will get along great.

My first day in Sarajevo, I walked down to the center and old part of the city where there are lots of shops, restaurants, and cafes. I felt a little overwhelmed at first, because the area was full of people walking all around. However, whenever I felt a little anxiety set in I just sat down by a fountain or on a bench and just took it all in. It was a beautiful, sunny day, with temperatures around the 70's. 

I will be here until around July 9^th, until I leave for the youth camp in Srebrenica. I have heard a lot of great things about the camp and I am looking forward to seeing what kinds of people from all over Europe will come. After the camp, I intend on returning to Sarajevo. I am very grateful to work with IFS-Emmaus and with Amela Efendic. I am a little intimidated by what valuable resources and people I will be working with in Sarajevo, but all the more, it inspires me to work hard and soak up all the information I can in this short period of time I will be here! I will be posting some photos soon. My first day in town, I was too overstimulated to take photos. Faruk is now making potatoes and fish “steaks' (read:sticks). Tomorrow, I want to make a big dinner for him to say thanks. I plan to read some of the literature on trafficking available downstairs and study Bosnian grammar in my free time. Of course, this will be broken up by lots of painting and exploring!